Broad agency announcement - federal aviation administration advancement of aviation research and technologies

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is dedicated to providing the safest and most efficient aerospace system in the world. We are committed to advancing the next level of aviation safety and efficiency, leading globally in the safe integration of new users, operations, and technologies into the National Airspace System (NAS).

As stewards of the American public and our aviation community, we hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards. Safety is our passion—we work tirelessly to ensure every air and space traveler reaches their destination securely. Excellence is our promise—we deliver results grounded in professionalism, transparency, and accountability. Integrity is our foundation—we carry out our responsibilities with honesty, ethical rigor, and moral soundness.

Our people are our greatest strength. The respect, collaboration, and dedication of our workforce drive our mission forward. Innovation is our hallmark, empowering us to envision and create solutions that push beyond today’s aerospace boundaries and shape the future of aviation.

As such, in order to accommodate research and technological solutions that we did not contemplate, an Area of Interest (AOI) is a broader problem statement than a traditional government solicitation. Likewise, our evaluation process will be conducted with our organizational objectives in mind, and the FAA may select vendors whose research and technological solutions show greater potential to achieve the FAA’s mission.

The FAA uses Other Transaction Agreements (OTAs or Agreements), authorized under the FAA Reauthorization Act of 1996, 49 U.S.C. 106(l)(6), to collaborate with traditional and nontraditional government contractors, as well as nonprofit research institutions. These Agreements will support research and prototype projects that directly enhance the FAA’s mission effectiveness by improving NAS-related platforms, systems, components, or materials—whether newly developed, acquired, or already in use. The information in this Research and Commercial Solutions Opening (RCSO) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) is intended to ensure that, to the greatest extent practicable, competitive procedures are used when entering into Agreements for research and prototype efforts.

This BAA is a competitive solicitation seeking proposals for innovative research, solutions, and commercial technologies that advance NAS capabilities. It will lead to the award of both research and prototype projects, encompassing commercially available technologies backed by commercial or strategic investment, as well as concept demonstrations, pilot efforts, and agile development activities that can incrementally enhance commercial technologies, existing government-owned capabilities, or emerging concepts for aviation applications.

The BAA is soliciting Research and Solution Briefs in response to AOIs. AOIs are focused topic(s) or categories that will be published separately and posted on the SAM.gov website. All Research and Solution Briefs submitted in response to any AOI will be governed by this BAA unless otherwise noted in the AOI.

AOIs are written in a much broader manner than standard Government solicitations to maximize latitude in creativity when approaching a problem and to allow for maximum participation from Entities who may not be familiar with submitting proposals to Government solicitations.

The BAA outlines the competitive procedures to submit a response to an AOI. The process will consist of three phases: Research or Solution Brief, Pitch (if applicable), and full written proposal (Request for Proposal). 

The Government may post AOIs at any time. Interested Entities are encouraged to frequently check the SAM.gov website for new AOI postings.